Poll: Americans Fret More about Expensive Health Care
than Terrorism

April 25, 2005 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - In a compelling
demonstration of the depth of Americans' worries about health
care costs, a new survey finds Americans fretting more about
those medical expenses than being a terrorist attack
victim.

The national
Kaiser Health Poll Report
, updated every other month, found that 49% of
respondents pronounced themselves “very worried” about
paying more for health care or health insurance while 19%
feared a terrorist attack and 18% were most worried about
being a violent crime victim.

Topping the worry list in the latest Kaiser data
were:

not being able to afford the health care you
think you need – 42%

not being able to afford the prescription drugs
you need – 35%

the quality of health care services you receive
getting worse – 32%

Among the non-health care worries popping up in the
“very worried” column were:

your income not keeping up with prices –
46%

not being able to pay your rent or mortgage –
29%

losing your savings in the stock market –
20%

Among the employed, 23% were most concerned about
losing their job while among those both employed and
insured, 21% said they fretted about having to stay in a
current job for fear of losing health benefits.

The full report is online at
http://www.kff.org/healthpollreport
. Findings for the current survey are based on a national
random sample of 1,203 adults with the polling conducted
March 31 to April 3, 2005.